If you don't know a lot about SEO, it can be a dangerous game trying to find yourself a reputable, but affordable, company to help improve your rankings. More times than I can count I've put together proposals for potential clients who don't "get it" and the final conversation I have with them involves a statement like, "Well, this company says they can get me number one rankings for $199 a month, and that's a lot less than what you charge." Of course if I get this company's name, I immediately go to their websites and find things like this... the telltale signs of an SEO ripoff artist. Let's run them down, shall we?
1. They show off rankings for terms that no one ever searches for. Check out this screen shot on an SEO company's home page showing you that they got a magic web site ranked first for "stage magic" Google's Keyword Tool reports that this keyword receives 260 searches per month! Somehow I doubt that's equating to thousands of visits each month. Further, I'm guessing a large percentage of the people searching for stage magic aren't even interested in buying magic trinkets. If this is their best example, you should be concerned.
2. Their own SEO sucks.If you see some obvious red flags on their own site, what do you think they're going to do for you? Look for overlong keyword stuffed page titles, bad on page copy, and even do some searches for terms that an SEO company should rank out for and see if they're there. The same site I reference above has the text below at the bottom of their home page. I'm not kidding.
Ann Arbor services serving Livingston county, Shiawasse county, Clinton county, Genesee county, Ingham county, Macolm county, Jackson county, Lapeer county, Midland county, Monroe county, Oakland county, Saginaw county, Washtenaw county, and Wayne county, Dexter, Saline, Ypsilanti , Whitmore Lake, Hamburg, Lakeland, Chelsea Bridgewater, South Lyon, Pinckney, Whittaker, Milan, Manchester, Willis, Brighton, Canton, Belleville, 43560, 43611, 43612, 43613, 43623, 48007, 48009, 48012, 48015, 48017, 48025, 48030, Plymouth, Clinton, New Hudson, Gregory, Northville, Novi services, Azalia, Tecumseh, Britton, Grass Lake, Wayne County, Westland, 43560, 43611, 43612, 43613, 43623, 48007, 48009, 48012, 48015, 48017, 48025, 48030, 48034, 48037, 48065, 48067, 48068, 48069, 48070, 48071, 48072, 48073, 48075, 48076, 48083, 48084, 48085, 48086, 48088, 48090, 48091, 48092, 48094, 48095, 48098, 48099, 48101, 48102, 48103, 48104, 48105, 48106, 48107, 48108, 48109, 48110, 48111, 48112, 48113, 48114, 48115, 48116, Ridgeway, Norvell, Wixom, Maybee, Romulus, Milford, Livonia , Dundee, Tipton, Detroit , 48034, 48037, 48065, 48067, 48068, 48069, 48070, 48071, 48072, 48073, 48075, 48076, 48083, 48084, 48085, 48086, New Boston, Garden City, Farmington, 48088, 48090, 48091, 48092, 48094, 48095, 48098, 48099, 48101, 48102, 48103, 48104, 48105, 48106, 48107, 48108, Howell, Oak Grove, Walled Lake, Stockbridge, Inkster, Napoleon, Munith, Carleton, Hartland, Deerfield, Brooklyn, Dearborn Heights , Onsted, Redford, Commerce Township, Dearborn , Taylor, Highland, Michigan Center, Petersburg, West Bloomfield , Flat Rock, 49248, 49249, 49251, 49253, 49254, 49256, 49257, 49259, 49261, 49262, 49263, 49264, 49265, 49266, 49267, 49268, 49270, 49271, 49272, 49275, 49276, 49277, 49278, 49279, 49280, 49281, 49282, 49283, 49285, 49286, 49287, 49288, 49289, Southfield , White Lake, Adrian, Pleasant Lake, Palmyra, Allen Park, Union Lake, Ida, Fowlerville, Jackson, Southgate, 48918, 48919, 48921, 48922, 48924, 48929, 48930, 48933, 48937, 48950, 48951, 48956, 48980, 49201, 49202, 49203, 49204, 49220, 49221, 49228, 49229, 49230, 49233, 49234, 49235, 49236, 49238, 49240, 49246, 49247, Dansville, Trenton, Melvindale, Clarklake, Lincoln Park, Monroe, South Rockwood, Webberville, Bloomfield Hills , Waterford, 48390, 48391, 48393, 48397, 48398, 48418, 48430, 48442, 48451, 48462, 48805, 48808, 48816, 48819, 48823, 48824, 48825, 48826, 48836, 48840, 48842, 48843, 48844, 48854, 48855, 48857, 48863, 48864, 48872, 48882, 48892, 48895, 48901, 48906, 48907, 48908, 48909, 48910, 48911, 48912, 48913, 48915, 48916, Cement City, Blissfield, Wyandotte, Franklin, Newport, Keego Harbor, Cohoctah, Manitou Beach, Rockwood, Ecorse, Riga, River Rouge, Oak Park, Grosse Ile, Somerset, Addison, Leslie, Berkley , Pontiac, Birmingham , 48303, 48304, 48306, 48307, 48308, 48309, Google PageRank, 48310, 48311, 48314, 48316, 48317, 48318, 48320, 48321, 48322, 48323, 48324, 48325, 48326, 48327, 48328, 48329, 48330, 48331, 48332, 48333, 48334, 48335, 48336, 48340, 48341, 48342, 48343, 48346, 48347, 48348, 48350, 48353, 48356, 48357, 48359, 48360 , 48361, 48362, 48363, 48366, 48367, 48370, 48371, 48374, 48375, 48376, 48377, 48380, 48381, 48382, 48383, 48386, 48387, Samaria, Huntington Woods, La Salle, Somerset Center, Fenton, Davisburg, Rives Junction, Clarkston, Drayton Plains, Rollin, Pleasant Ridge, Ferndale, Linden, Royal Oak , 48197, 48198, 48201, 48202, 48203, 48204, 48206, 48207, 48208, 48209, 48210, 48211, 48212, 48216, 48217, 48218, 48219, 48220, 48221, 48222, 48223, 48226, 48227, 48228, 48229, 48231, 48232, 48233, 48234, 48235, 48237, 48238, 48239, 48240, 48242, 48243, 48244, 48255, 48260, 48264, 48265, 48266, 48267, 48268, 48269, 48272, 48275, 48277, 48278, 48279, 48288, 48301, 48302, Ottawa Lake, Clayton, Highland Park, Troy services, Temperance, Jerome, Luna Pier, Clawson, Holly, Jasper, Lambertville, Sand Creek, Williamston, Hazel Park, Horton, Erie, Byron, Madison Heights, Auburn Hills s, Hamtramck, Weston, 48133, 48134, 48135, 48136, 48137, 48138, 48139, 48140, 48141, 48143, 48144, 48145, 48146, 48150, 48151, 48152, 48153, 48154, 48157, 48158, 48159, 48160, 48161, 48162, 48164, 48165, 48166, 48167, 48169, 48170, 48173, 48174, Spring Arbor, Mason, Warren, Sylvania, Lake Orion, Toledo, Seneca, Hudson, Rochester, Onondaga, North Adams, Moscow, Center Line, 48176, 48177, 48178, 48179, 48180, 48182, 48183, 48184, 48185, 48186, 48187, 48188, 48189, 48190, 48191, 48192, 48195, Sterling Heights, Perry, Morenci, Ortonville, Okemos, Morrice, Shaftsburg, Holt, Haslett, Utica, Oxford, Pittsford, Oakland, 48117, 48118, 48120, 48121, 48122, 48123, 48124, 48125, 48126, 48127, 48128, 48130, 48131, East Lansing, Lakeville, Lansing, Osseo, Washington, Waldron, Bath, Leonard, Romeo
3. Their tactics include "search engine submission". This is probably the biggest hoax perpetrated on unsuspecting clients. Do you know anyone who does a search on anything besides Google, Yahoo or Bing? Okay, your grandma might still be using AOL, and your weird cousin might be using Ask.com, but the truth is Google, Yahoo and Bing account for well over 90% of searches. So who are these other engines that you're being submitted to? And what is search engine submission anyhow? Search for your site on these engines. If you show up at all, the engines already know you exist. Anyone who says they're doing this is ripping you off. Submit your site map to Google, Yahoo and Bing and you're all set.
4. They never mention link building. Once your site has been optimized, you need to build links. Create useful content and get people to link to it. In competitive industries that's how you earn dominant rankings. If a company wants to work with you long term but isn't doing any link building, they are ripping you off. Ask your SEO firm how they intend to build you links. If they don't seem prepared to answer this question, run.
5. The only form of link building they discuss is directory submission. Yes, directories are links, but everyone can get them. You know why Wikipedia ranks out for everything? Because everyone links to Wikipedia! If you want to outrank Wikipedia and your smart competitors, directories are not going to get it done on their own. Not to mention, everyone can get in directories. Do you want to base your rankings on a strategy that anyone can copy? Not a good idea.
6. They're not easy to find. Maybe I'm biased here, but how often do you bank the success of your company on the work of someone who doesn't have an office or a 1-800 number? Not to bag on the many reputable SEOs that work from their homes, but these folks usually have no problem putting their contact information all over their site or even meeting you in person. If the only way you can contact them is via a web form, and there's no address, fax or a proper email address, this should raise some red flags. Leaving a wake of angry, dissatisfied customers would be a good reason to present a "business" this way. In the example below, this company doesn't even have email addresses that matches their domain. Hotmail? You run your company on Hotmail?
Are there exceptions to these rules? Occasionally. But being in this business unfortunately bumps you into the greasy snake oil salesmen out there and more times than not, these items are telltale signs you're going to be dealing with sketchy people who will take your money and provide you little to nothing in the way of results.